Hawaiʻi County police have charged a former Hilo man in connection with a robbery.

On October 5, a 68-year-old Hilo man reported to police that on May 25, as he was transporting a couple to a location in Hilo around 1 a.m., he was assaulted and his wallet was stolen.

The victim sustained a serious head injury and was transferred to Oahu for treatment. He reported the incident to police upon his return to the Big Island.

At 9:45 p.m. Thursday (November 29), after conferring with the prosecutor’s office, detectives from the Area I Criminal Investigations Section charged 26-year-old Timothy “Timmy” Russ Southern Jr., who has no permanent address, with first-degree robbery, first-degree assault and second-degree theft. His bail was set at $85,000. He made his initial court appearance Friday afternoon (November 30).